“This year’s cleanup is on April 5th,” said mayor Michael Nutter today. He and other city officials were on hand at the Urban Tree Connection, in the Haddington section of the city, to launch this year’s effort to “keep up the sweep-up.”

The mayor says it’s a community effort:

“Each year, thousands and thousands and thousands of volunteers — neighborhood people, organized community groups, and individuals on their own — volunteer to remove tons of trash from our neighborhoods and parks.”

Dow Chemical Co. is donating 1,000 gallons of paint for the effort.

Community groups and neighborhoods are encouraged to sign up for projects at phillyspringcleanup.com by Friday, March 21st. Last year, there were more than 565 projects that resulted in more than one million pounds of trash being removed.